"I have a feeling that Archibald wouldn't care about that."

Relieved that Michel had turned to work again, Charles let out a breath and nodded.


"He won't. After Mr. Aiden, he will be next in line to get Davies' leadership. Since Mr. Aiden has never had a son, he will be his second-in-command, obviously Archibald." He explained.

Michel ran his hand through his hair again.

"Does he have legs to stand on?"


"Some. He has connections to some clubs and still has a lot of security. Bellamy and Kieran will tell us."

Nodding, Michel licked his lips and immediately went into plot mode.


If Archibald decides to go against them, they need to keep a close eye on him.

Because in the end, that will be what can lead them straight to Mr. Aiden.

---

Andy didn't let go for a long time, holding Fanny to his chest tightly while she stiffly patted his back.

"I'm fine, Andy... Really..." She glanced at the window bench where Audrey and Rosabella were sitting, smiling at the sight as she shot them a look, begging them to save her. from Andy's concern.

"It sucks without you, Shortfoot. And everyone will agree. I swear Michel is one step away from shooting us all down purely for the sake of doing something." He finally let go of her so he could look at her properly.

Fanny shifted her gaze at the mention of Michel.

Audrey immediately joined in, hoping to turn the subject away from the leader of the Black Roses.

"We really miss you. Even this little one misses you..." Audrey stroked her big bump.

Her face softened, a gentle smile tugging at Fanny's lips. "How long have you been pregnant now?" She asked softly, still having trouble adjusting to the passage of time.

During her time in captivity, she lost all sense of it, causing her to often confuse the months.

"Eight months. I'm due in exactly three weeks."

Fanny looked at Audrey and envied the light on the woman's cheek.

Audrey looks absolutely radiant.

"You look beautiful, Audrey." She said, her gaze shifting from Audrey to Rosabella and then back to Andy.

It all felt very bizarre to her. Back to everyone acting very normal while it was common knowledge of what happened to her.

It goes without saying that her father and Gwen are also dead.

She hears three people talking, but Fanny feels she can't be contacted anymore. She really feels like all that's left of her is an empty shell.

---

Sitting around the table, Carlos was shoveling rice into his mouth while Vengo looked around with a confused look on his face.

"Where's Rosabella and Andy?"

Audrey put down her chopsticks and wiped her mouth. "They're eating with Fanny, Tazanna. We've spent the afternoon with her and the two of them don't want to leave her alone for dinner."

Michel picked up the food, grumbling in his stomach. What's wrong with him?

A whole month ago, all he wanted was to see Fanny, talk to her, and hug her. And now?

Everyone was casually going in and out of her room while he needed to keep his distance from her.

It's infuriating.

Looking around the table, he was annoyed to see only alcohol being served with the food.

He wanted something stronger to keep him at sea level.

"I'd love to meet this chick that broke Michel," Kaylin said, taking a sip of her drink.

Everyone burst into laughter, which made him immediately raise his head and shoot a glare at them, causing them all to immediately stop and shut up.

It took a few seconds for Vengo to resume the conversation, hoping to keep it light as he could sense Michel's anger from where he was sitting.

"I thought you were with them when they found her," Vengo said, throwing a glance at Kaylin.

She nodded. "I was like that but I wanted to meet her officially. It doesn't count when she really is a lifeless corpse waiting..."

"Kaylin, shut up." Carlos who was sitting next to her pushed her away.

Panting, Kaylin pushed him back. "How dare you talk to me like that? Don't be surprised when you wake up one day and have the heels of my red shoes on your ass."

"You..."

"Shut." Michel slammed his hand on the table, silencing everyone including Audrey, who flinched, clutching her stomach.

Noticing her reaction, he sighed and stood up, threw his napkin on his uneaten food, and walked out.

---

Placing his hand on her doorknob, Michel wasn't sure if entering her room would be acceptable.

She told him she hates him, but is she? Or does seeing her in so much pain make him feel unbearable?

Last night was tough and Christian has told him she most likely won't remember what happened. But he helped her, didn't he?

He didn't take away her pain permanently, though at least he tried to give her a little rest.

In the end, it was her happiness that made him come in. He needs to see for himself if she's okay.

Slowly going into the room, he found her sitting up and on the bed sheet, her face looking out the window turned to meet him.

And to his surprise, she didn't start yelling or swearing at him. This time she was just speechless holding his gaze, looking tired and slightly sunken.

Worried, Michel cleared his throat. "This..."

Fanny looked at him for a moment longer before her gaze returned to the window.

He didn't know what she was watching since it was dark now, but he certainly didn't want to mention her strange behavior.

Fanny also hasn't talked in a while so he doesn't know exactly if he's okay with her around.

However, since she did not order him to leave, he chose to stay.

"I know you were here last night." She surprised him by suddenly starting to talk, not making eye contact with him, but still talking to him.

Michel wanted to say something, but he didn't know anything. He was just so overwhelmed at that moment that he was stuck in this state of opening and closing his mouth, trying to choose the right words.